I don’t think cork would work, and I like cork pool cue wraps. If I could find a Spanish Bull leather that was able to be
dyed dark green, really dark, maybe that’s the way to go. But I have to see the color to confirm. Since that’s iffy, then I must recommend linen but not any linen.
Yeah, many know me as a huge fan of Cortland and it’s really misleading to refer to it as linen, especially with what been sold the past few decades. Cuttyhunk linen fishing lines are not linen pool cues wraps by purpose and went never intended to be anything but wet because fish tend to live in water. George Balabushka unintentionally made Cortland Linen #9 the legendary pool cue wrap it became. Yup, white with green speck permeates pool cue history.
It just so happens it’s availability is very slim and if you locate any, it will be expensive, more than any leather wrap.
You also have to be careful and confirm the condition. This fishing line hasn’t been made for decades and it can dry
out and become unfit to use if improperly stored. But the green speck coincides with the green in the cue and it is
easily recognizable as CL #9, the most famous pool cue wrap in history. Cortland is very hard to find and cue makers hold onto it dearly. Why? Because they’d rather use it on an expensive custom cue so customer might request and the wrap will become representative of the cue maker’s skills in the finished cue. Besides, he’d make his customer very happy and can also charge as much as he wants in the cue’s final price. Now compare that with just selling you 50 yds. of CL#9 or charging for a simple rewrap instead of using on a cue that he is getting thousands of dollars for.
There is no more Cortland Linen except for whatever you can find and again, check the quality. I know since 12 years
I bought some CL w black speck and sent it to Jerry R. for a cue underway. The initial 10-15 yds on the spool were fine but further down it was frayed and brittle. Jerry tried to restore it but wasn’t successful and had to trash it. Fortunately, he still had some CL#9 stashed away for special orders and used it for my cue wrap. That CL black spec cost me $200.
I think Cortland Linen #9 would add a distinct look and like I said, it is not a linen wrap. It is Cortland and stands alone.
Four of my cues have CL#9. My Scruggs has a different CL line or in other words, lbs. rating , since CL is a fishing line.
